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Indonesia urges Singapore to withdraw all S$10,000 notes: Report

JAKARTA — Indonesia’s Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (PPATK) has called on Singapore to withdraw all S$10,000 notes from the market, as it would be more effective to curb rampant corruption and money-laundering activities, according to the Jakarta Post.

S$10,000 note. Photo: Channel NewsAsia

S$10,000 note. Photo: Channel NewsAsia

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JAKARTA — Indonesia’s Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (PPATK) has called on Singapore to withdraw all S$10,000 notes from the market, as it would be more effective to curb rampant corruption and money-laundering activities, according to the Jakarta Post.

Singapore’s Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) announced last Wednesday (July 2) it would no longer be issuing the S$10,000 note from Oct 1 onwards, in a move to lower the risk of money-laundering.

A Jakarta Post report today cited PPATK Deputy Chairman Agus Santoso as saying that while the MAS move would “meaningfully” help Indonesia curb rampant corruption and money-laundering, withdrawing or imposing a new expiration date on the notes would be more effective.

“If the bill remained on the market, let’s say until five to 10 years after its production stops, Indonesia would still be vulnerable to money-laundering and graft,” Mr Agus said in the report.

“The S$10,000 bank note, which is not widely used in Singapore on a daily basis as legal tender, is the bill-of-choice for bribed players or for graft suspects because they can exchange a large amount of rupiah for just a few bank notes,” he added.

Jakarta Post said in almost every arrest of graft suspects, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has seized S$10,000 bills. For example, the KPK had confiscated several S$10,000 bills during the arrest of former Constitutional Court Chief Justice Akil Mochtar and former head of Upstream Oil and Gas Regulatory Special Task Force Rubi Rubiandini, the report added.

The Indonesian news agency also said Singapore will continue to print the S$1,000 bill, which is considered one of the world’s most valuable bank notes. CHANNEL NEWSASIA

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